Audiobus: Use your music apps together.

What is Audiobus?Audiobus is an award-winning music app for iPhone and iPad which lets you use your other music apps together. Chain effects on your favourite synth, run the output of apps or Audio Units into an app like GarageBand or Loopy, or select a different audio interface output for each app. Route MIDI between apps — drive a synth from a MIDI sequencer, or add an arpeggiator to your MIDI keyboard — or sync with your external MIDI gear. And control your entire setup from a MIDI controller.

Download on the App Store

Audiobus is the app that makes the rest of your setup better.

Modstep, suddenly it just clicked.

I bought modstep at launch, fiddled with it. Uninstalled and reinstalled multiple times. Now I came back after a many months, installed it and it clicked. Finally my brain wrapped around and loves it.
After reading on the forum about standard studiomux (audio & midi over cable) support in modstep, I can see the full potential. This app is powerfull!
How is your relationship with modstep?

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Comments

  • Care to tell the rest of us what it is that clicked? Is it just a great sequencer, or something else?

  • I love it, the sequencer is very unique and fluid.
    I was waiting for v2...The fact you can't save sessions with an external host stopped me using it more often. No AB statesaving yet.
    Now though we're getting more advanced midi recording options, Photon AU + upcoming Audioveek piano roll. I think I'll use it more again as I can record the output into the host in AB3/AUM/APM

  • edited March 2019

    The step sequencer and clip launcher finally clicked. In the step sequencer you have these 16 pattern blocks, which can be on or off, which make great live performance possible. In the clip launcher you can make a clip and set which pattern blocks to use (long hold clip), this way you can make quick variations. There are some other settings, how many loops before switching clips. The overall flow of a pattern, to clip just did not click right away, also routing midi was a bit of a hassle. It is more geared towards performance based, where I come from simple linear sequencing.

  • I think it works well as a linear sequencer too, but I think it's vital that it's used in tandem with ApeMatrix, Audiobus, and AUM so as to make it current with the latest AUv3 specification (MIDI FX plugins ect). Those bridging apps will also extend various state saving approaches (Audiobus is better with IAA's but ApeMatix and AUM are more flexible with AUv3's). Considering ModStep is permanently available at its sale price of $9.99 (50% off) and provides Studiomux capabilities without the need for Studiomux (which is $9.99 alone) it's definitely worth adding to your toolset, even though ModStep 2 will be released at some point over the next 12 months or so.

    Another really powerful aspect to ModStep is that it comes with a large number of MIDI CC configurations for other iOS apps and hardware synthesizers. These CC mappings make it really easy to modulate those apps/hardware synths without the hassle of having to set up the mappings yourself in advance.

  • @jaijai said:
    The step sequencer and clip launcher finally clicked. In the step sequencer you have these 16 pattern blocks, which can be on or off, which make great live performance possible. In the clip launcher you can make a clip and set which pattern blocks to use (long hold clip), this way you can make quick variations. There are some other settings, how many loops before switching clips. The overall flow of a pattern, to clip just did not click right away, also routing midi was a bit of a hassle. It is more geared towards performance based, where I come from simple linear sequencing.

    Ya, that's what I always tell people, I can and do use it mostly in song mode (i.e. set number of repeats per scene) but that would be easier in an actual linear one if I had a more linear work flow.

  • edited March 2019

    Just mentioned it in another thread:
    Modstep can be a nice MIDI clip launcher.
    You can set a clip to play only once, and you can even make it launch immediately without waiting for the next beat or 16th note.
    A bit like ChordPolyPad for MIDI riffs, something I only remember I've seen in the recently launched Photon MIDI recorder.

  • Modstep is the thinking person's Gadget

  • edited March 2019

    @AndyPlankton said:
    Modstep is the thinking person's Gadget

    Nicely said.

    I'd add that ModStep is for artists that don't like to be restricted to the confines of the 'walled garden'.

  • edited March 2019

    @AndyPlankton said:
    Modstep is the thinking person's Gadget

    A thinking person might find after a while that Gadget can be the better option for composition, including sliced audio support and a fine collection of built-in synths that don't kill the CPU even when using 20 of 'em.
    And a working total recall and stable MIDI clock slave sync.

  • I'd use Modstep more if it was more actively maintained, supported Midi FX AUs, its inputs/outputs screen was better designed, supported arps, chords out of the box.

    Outside of MIDI AU, Gadget with Taipei (now) does all of this this. Maybe Modstep 2...

  • Glad for this thread cause I have Modstep but have alway been afraid that I would fail if I really tried to spend time learning it. So thanks!

  • @jaijai said:
    I bought modstep at launch, fiddled with it. Uninstalled and reinstalled multiple times.
    How is your relationship with Modstep

    Pretty much as above

  • @rs2000 said:

    @AndyPlankton said:
    Modstep is the thinking person's Gadget

    A thinking person might find after a while that Gadget can be the better option for composition, including sliced audio support and a fine collection of built-in synths that don't kill the CPU even when using 20 of 'em.
    And a working total recall and stable MIDI clock slave sync.

    A deep thinking person could use both together. ;)

  • @Carnbot said:

    @rs2000 said:

    @AndyPlankton said:
    Modstep is the thinking person's Gadget

    A thinking person might find after a while that Gadget can be the better option for composition, including sliced audio support and a fine collection of built-in synths that don't kill the CPU even when using 20 of 'em.
    And a working total recall and stable MIDI clock slave sync.

    A deep thinking person could use both together. ;)

    ;)

  • Gadget has Undo.
    Kinda.
    And it doesn’t Crash
    2-0 Gadget.

  • The thing with iOS apps is that waiting for the next update fixing this or that can become a bit frustrating, so my take on it is to mostly use them for what they're best at.
    Modstep for these live MIDI clips, Groove Rider for synth/modulation/wavetable/slicing MPC-alike composition and Gadget for the more classic way of composing music.
    Others may have totally different preferences but I'd conclude that iOS music apps have become powerful enough to seriously produce music. Not as straightforward and flexible as classic Win/Mac programs but rather restrictive enough to push your creativity.

  • @SpookyZoo said:
    Gadget has Undo.
    Kinda.
    And it doesn’t Crash
    2-0 Gadget.

    ModStep has x2 and x 1/2 playback of MIDI clips
    Modstep has scale per pattern
    ModStep can send Program Change
    ModStep can Import/Export single MIDI Clips or entire track
    ModStep scene and clip launching can be MIDI controlled

    Gadget 2-5 ModStep :D

  • @AndyPlankton said:

    @SpookyZoo said:
    Gadget has Undo.
    Kinda.
    And it doesn’t Crash
    2-0 Gadget.

    ModStep has x2 and x 1/2 playback of MIDI clips
    Modstep has scale per pattern
    ModStep can send Program Change
    ModStep can Import/Export single MIDI Clips or entire track
    ModStep scene and clip launching can be MIDI controlled

    Gadget 2-5 ModStep :D

    Haha. Fair play.

    They both bug me though.

    I use Xequence for the win. 😃👍

  • Well, good it hear it clicks, rather than crackles.
    ;)

  • @SpookyZoo said:

    @AndyPlankton said:

    @SpookyZoo said:
    Gadget has Undo.
    Kinda.
    And it doesn’t Crash
    2-0 Gadget.

    ModStep has x2 and x 1/2 playback of MIDI clips
    Modstep has scale per pattern
    ModStep can send Program Change
    ModStep can Import/Export single MIDI Clips or entire track
    ModStep scene and clip launching can be MIDI controlled

    Gadget 2-5 ModStep :D

    Haha. Fair play.

    They both bug me though.

    I use Xequence for the win. 😃👍

    hahaha, likewise, I wish ModStep had Gadgets stability, and that Gadget had ModSteps flexibility and features. tbf to ModStep it is usually AU/IAA's that cause it to crash when it does...it seems pretty solid when using just MIDI and tbf to Gadget the recent MIDI out update brings it a lot closer to ModStep than it was. Maybe one day.....

  • I love both Gadget and modstep. Modstep is much more “blue sky,” while gadget promotes a “git ‘er done” sketching session.

    It’s not either/or.

  • @johnfromberkeley said:
    I love both Gadget and modstep. Modstep is much more “blue sky,” while gadget promotes a “git ‘er done” sketching session.

    It’s not either/or.

    I agree completely.

  • edited March 2019

    @jaijai , I had an "aha" with Modstep once too. The scene/clip/pattern setup is really pretty novel and allows for some really creative sequencing IMO. Clips are broken into 16 separate 1 bar, 16 step patterns. There is an incredible amount of flexibility about how these 16 patterns are combined to form the MIDI data in a clip.

    I'm cautious about using apps from these devs though. The devs have a history (IMO) of making these really cool, unique creative tools, and then providing limited support afterwards.

  • Modstep is cool for sure for clip-based sequencing. Just adding a note here (since it wasn't clear to me until I bought it) that it isn't a substitute for a linear sequencer as you are limited to working in chunks/clips. But for those use cases, it is great.

  • In the absence of audio clip looping (Modstep 2), I’ve been scratching the clip based workflow itch using Stagelight. I can loop midi and audio clips, and as long as I stick to AUv3 apps, which I largely do anyway, I can do everything I use Modstep for except tempo changes. The timeline is a bonus as well.

  • Modstep step is a great way to write songs with parts / changes... It's My fav way to have access all of the world of iOS, and create full tracks...

    I just find, like people here showed me is that it's best to host your synths / effects inside AUM and control them via modstep, super stable this way and you can do everything that modstep allows this way and more

  • ModStep + AUM is like Fish and Chips...both great with a Lager :)

  • @wim said:
    In the absence of audio clip looping

    Actually!

  • @wim said:
    In the absence of audio clip looping (Modstep 2), I’ve been scratching the clip based workflow itch using Stagelight. I can loop midi and audio clips, and as long as I stick to AUv3 apps, which I largely do anyway, I can do everything I use Modstep for except tempo changes. The timeline is a bonus as well.

    Very interesting.
    I bought the iOS version of StageLight, but never played around with it.
    That may change now, based on what you wrote!

  • @ExAsperis99 said:

    @wim said:
    In the absence of audio clip looping

    Actually!

    Yeh, I know. Just not my kinda workflow.

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